This is a wonderfully deep book written in an accessible manner by Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury. He expands on the meaning of Jesus death on the cross with a theology which is attractive and positive.
Firstly we are shown the way first century Christians would have viewed the cross- as torture instrument and shock and awe tactic of Rome. Exploring different ways of looking at the atonement, the author points out that the penal substition theory, held to be THE TRUTH by many evangelical Christians is not the only biblical model for what happened on Good Friday, a part but not the whole truth.
In considering the cross as sign and as sacrifice we are inevitably led to a doctrine of the trinity to make some sense of what happened in Jesus life, death and resurrection, but we are reminded that it is ultimately a mystery, and that is OK too.
Rowan Williams wide theological knowledge clearly underpins all he write here, but he eschews dense theological arguments and gives us his views in an accessible form, constantly returning to the biblical texts.
The questions at the end of each chapter help us to consider and focus on what we have just learned..

The final chapter meditation on the Harrowing of Hell Icon was moving and significant to me. Jesus brings out the souls from Hell starting with Adam and Eve, who are portrayed as old with the scars of the knowledge of good and evil on them. God redeems us in our struggling, falling and failing, not waiting for us to get tidied up and ready to be saved.

"The catastrophe, the self destructive spiral downwards of human beings, is grabbed and halted by the hand of God." Now that is good news indeed.

There is our theological starting point. Believing in the resurrection is believing that the new age has been inaugurated, the new world has begun. And that the new world is, as we might put it, the final phase of the history of God's relation with his people. So to say Jesus is risen is to say that we have now entered on the last days, the final decisive phase of God's interaction with Israel and through Israel, with the whole world.

Such a gem in the study of the resurrection. If you are like me and have gone to church for any length of time, we know the resurrection has power and is the foundation of the Christian faith. This study goes even deeper of the significance of the resurrection with our relationship with others, God, the church, the end times and even prayer.

One of the things that blew me away which may not be significant for you is the reason why we worship on Sunday. I have heard because of Easter and the significance of Easter. But it goes even deeper than that. The resurrection implies new beginning. Sunday the first day of the week is a new beginning each and every week.

Along with the resurrection comes the cross. The cross encompasses sacrifice, victory and will take a lifetime to appreciate it's true meaning. With both, we come to know the God of mercy and justice. Nothing as sweeter as that.

A Special Thank You to Westminster John Knox Press and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review

This book is an invitation to stand at the intersection of the Passion and its impact on the world and feel deeply the change it has made.

Williams contributes quite a bit of valuable, highly relevant church history to the journey he takes us on. It is unflinchingly about the cross, but so much more than a predictable retelling of the crucifixion. Williams places the cross as the lamppost of all history, the resurrection as the bellwether which directs us to our perspective on life and humanity in general. We are brought to understand the deep connection of our loving God to a humanity who matters as they are in their humanity, a God who does not wish to make us something we are not but meets us where we are and dies for the effort.

The cross and the resurrection and not about death, but about life. About lives. The cross is about the life of Jesus which led him there, the life that he rose to after the cross. The life that we live in now. Just as Williams says: "the cross is a victory, because in a sense the victory has already been won in the life of Jesus."

I found this book to be highly engaging. As a devotional, it may be a bit heavy. I wouldn't recommend it for that. As a vehicle of deeper understanding of the cross and its meaning, though, I would rate it as a top choice. It doesn't intend to help the reader understand their own journey, but the journey of Christ. In its reading, that is the journey you find yourself on. Not standing beside Pontius Pilate or Peter, but Jesus himself. Not in the Garden, but in the vast expanse of history.

I love to come across books that are theologically rigorous but not inaccessible to readers. Rowan Williams has mastered the skill of writing them, having successfully straddled both practical ministry and academic work for decades. In this particular book, right at 100 pages long, he invites deep meditation on the Scriptural portrayal of the cross and the resurrection. If it were longer, I'd love more sustained engagement with historical theological voices, but this is already a book I can share and teach and preach from within my congregation.